Poland continues to puzzle Canada in World League Volleyball

KATOWICE, Poland,( June 1, 2012) Poland defeated Canada 28-26, 25-18 and 25-20 to open second week Group B FIVB World League men's volleyball action on Friday.

With that victory Poland retains the Group B lead with three wins and a loss. Canada drops to 2-2, both losses to Poland. Brazil defeated Finland in straight sets to also stand at 2-2 while the Finns are 1-3.

Much like their encounter in Toronto two weeks ago, the first set was the turning point in the Poland-Canada match played before 8,800 fans at the Spodek.

Canada quickly built a 7-3 lead thanks in part to Gavin Schmitt of Saskatoon who delivered three consecutive points on serves. However, Poland started to find some momentum and tied the score at 9-9 and led 16-13 at the second technical time out.

The Canadians though roared back to tie the score at 19-19 and from that moment the play stayed close. As was the case in Toronto, Poland snuffed out the set win and the Canadians never seem to recover.

"It is difficult to explain how I feel after a match like this," said Canada's team captain Fred Winters of Victoria. ‘’It was really hard to play. I think during the first set we had a chance, but when we lost it, we lost everything."

Poland carried the momentum from the previous set and smoothly jumped ahead to a three-point-lead (6-3) in set two. Canada fought back to 15-15 but it was a brief tie. The Poles kept a firm grip on their play and with Michal Kubiak's powerful serves took the set 25-18.

The third set was even better for the hosts as they gained a three-point-advantage early on. The rest of the set was a display of Poland's domination including a series of points scored by young middle-blocker Lukasz Wisniewski with his tricky serves.

"Our reception was really bad and there was no comparison between my team and team Poland," said Canada' head coach Glenn Hoag. "They played great in the block in particular."

Schmitt led Canada with 17 points while Gord Perrin added 10 including three aces.

Canada faces Brazil on Saturday while the Finns battle Poland.

ROSTER

Canadian team roster for Group B second round in World League men’s volleyball June 1-3 in Kartowice, Poland